The Coast Guard suspended the search Friday for a female passenger reported overboard from the cruise ship Grand Princess approximately 750 miles northeast of Hilo.

A flare marks where the a sailor fell into the ocean when I was visiting the USS Essex.

Two Coast Guard HC-130 Hercules airplane crews from Air Station Barber’s Point searched for approximately 20 hours.

A Navy P-3 Orion airplane crew from Navy Patrol Squadron FOUR based at Marine Corps Base Kaneohe and the commercial tug and barge Moku Pahu also assisted in search efforts.

More than 10,000 square miles were searched.

Watchstanders at the Coast Guard Joint Rescue Coordination Center were notified at approximately 1 p.m. Wednesday by the crew of the Grand Princess that the 54-year-old was overboard.

“Suspending a search is never an easy decision to make,” said Lt. Cmdr. Peter Zauner, command duty officer of the Coast Guard Joint Rescue Coordination Center. “It’s done with much deliberation and after a concerted effort to ensure that the Coast Guard has adequately searched all probable locations for survivors. We offer our thoughts and prayers to the family and loved ones.”

For more information, contact the 14th Coast Guard District public affairs office at (808) 535-3230.

Three adults are safe after being rescued from a recreational vessel that ran out of fuel 21 miles northwest of Kailua-Kona Sunday morning.

Three adults are safe after they were rescued from their vessel that ran out of fuel 21 miles northwest of Kailua-Kona June 9, 2013. Several Coast Guard crews responded, took the vessel in tow and returned them safely to Kawaihae harbor. (U.S. Coast Guard photo)

Coast Guard Sector Honolulu received a call from a friend of the vessel’s crew, notifying Coast Guard watchstanders that the 21-foot pleasure craft was running out of fuel.

A Coast Guard 45-foot Response Boat Medium crew from Station Maui, a HC-130 Hercules airplane crew from Air Station Barbers Point and the Coast Guard Cutter Kiska were launched to the scene.

The aircrew arrived on scene at 5:15 p.m., and dropped provisions, flares and a radio in a watertight container and was able to establish communications with the vessel’s captain.

At 7:10 p.m., the response boat crew took the vessel in tow and returned them safely to Kawaihae harbor.

The Coast Guard strongly encourages boaters to remain aware of their vessel’s fuel capacity and other limitations while operating offshore of the Hawaiian Islands. Filing float plans, installing a VHF marine band radio and frequently checking safety equipment like flares and life jackets can greatly increase your survival in an emergency or help avoid an emergency altogether.

The Coast Guard, U.S. Navy and local agencies, continue to search for a missing sailor off of Kaena Point, Friday.

Friday’s search is scheduled to include the Coast Guard Cutters Walnut and Kiska as well as a 45-foot Response Boat-Medium from Station Honolulu, a 47-foot Motor Life Boat from Station Kauai, an MH-65 Dolphin helicopter and HC-130 Hercules airplane from Air Station Barbers Point. Crews aboard the Military Sealift Command’s Submarine and Special Warfare Support Vessel C-Commando are also involved as well as Marine Corps CH-53E Super Stallion helicopters and a Navy P-3C Orion airplane are also joining the search efforts. Thursday’s search also included a Navy SH-60B Seahawk helicopter.

Crews are searching an area from Kaena Point stretching 30 miles north and 74 miles west. The total search area for Friday is approximately 690 square miles. The total area searched, since Tuesday, is 9,896 square miles, more than twice the square mileage of the Big Island.

Coast Guard watchstanders in the Sector Honolulu command center were initially notified of the missing man on Tuesday afternoon.

The Pathfinder for Maritime Search & Rescue

Coast Guard crews searched throughout the night on Tuesday, all of Wednesday and into Thursday. Search crews extended their search area Thursday based on data received by self locating datum marker buoys, which help track ocean current directions, assisting search planners in directing the different air and surface assets.

For more information regarding the search, contact the 14th Coast Guard District public affairs office at (808) 535-3230.

For more information regarding the Navy sailor, contact Lt. Cmdr. David McKinney at (619) 522-2816.